Old Coach Road Nelson Chardonnay 2014

Wine Analysis

Vineyard: Seifried Rabbit Island Vineyard
Sugar at Harvest: 22.8°Brix
Residual Sugar: 1.89g/L (dry)
Date of Harvest: Early April 2014
pH of Wine: 3.48
T.A of Wine: 6.8g/L
Suitable for Vegetarians and Vegans: Yes

The Vineyard

Our Rabbit Island Vineyards are situated on a wide river flat. The soil is made up of gravelly sandy loam, which marks the sites of Maori kumara beds (sweet potato) prior to European settlement in the early 1800’s. The Maori transferred and spread fine gravel and sand over the land to provide suitable soils for their kumara plantings. Scrub was burned to give ash and charcoal, which increased soil fertility and gave characteristic topsoil. This fertility is now considerably reduced due to modern farming. The soils are, however, very sandy and free draining. The water table is relatively high ensuring adequate underground water.

Winemakers Note

Careful canopy management and leaf removal around the fruit zone allowed the sun to fully ripen the grapes. After picking, the grapes were transported to the winery where they were gently de-stemmed and pressed.

The juice was settled and fermented at a cool temperature to retain fruit aromas. On completion of the primary fermentation, 70% of the wine was aged in French and American oak, for several months. Malolactic fermentation was then completed on 20% of the blend. Vineyard parcels were picked, fermented and oak aged separately and finally blended and bottled.

Tasting Note

The 2014 Old Coach Road Chardonnay is soft and flavoursome. It has tropical stonefruit characters and a soft hazelnut background. A lingering smooth spicy finish last after the wine is gone.